Mediterranean Cauliflower Rice

I’m late to the cauliflower rice party. I was skeptical. How could blitzed raw cauliflower, warmed in a skillet, taste anywhere near as satisfying as fluffy, steaming rice? It can’t. The inevitable truth is that cauliflower rice needs some help from other flavors to send me back for seconds.

This is cauliflower rice kicked up several notches by some of my favorite Mediterranean ingredients. Fresh parsley, lemon, garlic, toasted almonds and red pepper flakes make this cauliflower rice an irresistible side dish. It tastes like rice pilaf crossed with tabbouleh, if you will.

I first made this cauliflower rice as a side dish for some leftovers, but it turned into dinner when I couldn’t stop going back for more. To be certain that the recipe was blog-worthy, I made the rice again for my skeptical taste testers.

Their response? “You know, this is really good. Like, really good. Why is this so good?” That’s when I threw my fists in the air and started making slow victory laps around the kitchen island.

You could make this low-carb cauliflower rice to round out a light meal, or to lighten up an otherwise heavy dinner. It will go well with any recipe that is loosely Mediterranean in flavor, especially with dishes that contain lemon and fresh herbs. Serve this recipe when a green salad won’t cut it!

Cauliflower Rice Notes & Tips

The key to making great cauliflower rice is to wring excess moisture from the cauliflower rice before cooking. That way, the “rice” can caramelize in places and yield major flavor bonus points. Otherwise, the rice just steams in the pan, and we all know how compelling plain steamed vegetables are (heh).

The best way to make cauliflower rice is in a food processor with the S-blade. I tried making the cauliflower rice a few different ways—grated by hand, then in the food processor with the grating attachment, and again in the food processor with the S-blade. I’m sure there’s some moisture variability from cauliflower to cauliflower, but I was able to squeeze out the most moisture from the cauliflower rice that I made with the S-blade.

Buy store-bought cauliflower rice to make this recipe quicker, with less mess. Fair warning: No matter how I grated the cauliflower, I made a mess. I was underwhelmed by the bagged cauliflower rice from Trader Joe’s produce section, though—it was not as fresh-tasting as my homemade rice, and I couldn’t squeeze much moisture out of it (perhaps it dries out in the bag?). You might have better luck with frozen cauliflower rice, but I haven’t had a chance to try it yet.

Stovetop-cooked cauliflower rice tastes better than roasted cauliflower rice. I tried roasting the cauliflower rice in the oven, and I didn’t love the results. By the time the rice was golden, it had lost a ton of volume and offered a strangely spongey texture. The stovetop rice was tastier, fluffier, and ready sooner!

As always, please let me know how you like this recipe in the comments section. If you’re a cauliflower rice connoisseur, please share your tips with me, too!

Instructions

If you’re working with a head of cauliflower, cut it into medium chunks (see photo) and discard the core. Working in batches, pulse the chunks in a food processor with the S-blade until they’re broken into tiny pieces, just bigger than couscous. (See recipe notes if you don’t have a food processor.)

Wrap the cauliflower rice in a clean tea towels or paper towels, twist, and squeeze as much water as possible from the rice—you might be surprised by how much water you can wring out.

Toast the almonds in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently (careful, or they’ll burn), until they’re fragrant and starting to turn golden on the edges, about 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the toasted almonds to a bowl to cool.

Return the skillet to the heat and add the olive oil and garlic. Cook while stirring until the garlic is fragrant, about 10 to 20 seconds. Add the cauliflower rice, red pepper flakes and salt, and stir to combine. Cook, stirring just every minute or so, until the cauliflower rice is hot and turning golden in places, about 6 to 10 minutes.

Remove the skillet from the heat. Stir in the toasted almonds, parsley and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve warm.

Notes

Make it nut free: Substitute raw sunflower seeds for the almonds.

If you don’t have a food processor: Slice the cauliflower into even quarters and grate the cauliflower on the medium holes of a grater. Grate one quarter at a time, then repeat with the remaining quarters.

▸ Nutrition Information

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Did you make this recipe?

Please let me know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below and share a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #cookieandkate.

I was late to the cauliflower bandwagon also, but absolutely love it. I really think “rice” is a misnomer. It really isn’t like rice at all, except in color. I usually get the bag of pre-riced from the frozen section and roast it in the oven with oil, salt, and garlic. It’s true that it loses volume. I’ll have to try out your recipe.

Hi, I tried this tonight with Whole Foods’ frozen cauiflower ‘rice’ and it was quick, easy and delicious! i served it with with some arugula dressed with lemon and olive oil and grilled chicken (marinated in lemon olive oil and thyme). thanks for sharing this great recipe!

This reminds me of how I make my cauliflower rice, minus the almonds and pepper flakes. I actually use the Trader Joe’s riced bags in the produce section (the frozen ones are way too mushy for me) but don’t have to drain them. I heat up a few tablespoons of avocado oil and saute some fresh garlic for a second then add the riced cauli straight out of the bag and saute for about a minute or two on high heat, turn it down a bit, put a lid on it and cook for 3-4 more minutes, stirring occasionally, squeeze a half lemon over it at the end and stir. Not cooking it too long seems to be the trick to it not getting mushy or soggy. I serve with a couple of tablespoons of feta cheese, some cucumber, tzaziki and skhug (it’s a copy of Zoe’s Kitchen’s recipe). I’m thinking the almonds would be a wonderful touch to it though!

Hi Kate, just wanted to let you know I made your Mediterranean Cauliflower Rice for dinner last night for my family in England” . We Loved it. It was so light and fluffy. I served it with baked salmon and have the leftovers in my super salad for lunch today” . This recipe is a keeper and will definitely be one I make again. Thank you. I enjoy your blog.

I regularly make the frozen cauliflower rice from Trader Joe’s. You can find at least 5 bags in our freezer at all times, so it’s safe to say my husband and I are obsessed :) I make it a few times a week. I saute the cauli rice in a pan with a little olive oil and once it’s cooked, I simply add black pepper, garlic salt and fresh lemon juice (LOTS because I love lemon) and it’s simply divine! I will be trying your recipe soon though because this also sounds amazing!

I feel the same way about the cauliflower rice in the produce section at Trader Joe’s, BUT the frozen riced cauliflower is great! I find I’m still able to get the nice brown bits and fluffy texture by cooking it straight from the bag into a hot pan. Definitely going to try out this recipe. Thanks!

Very good indeed! I had no doubt I would like the taste, but I was amazed such a fluffy texture could be obtained! It should definitely be called cauliflower couscous instead of rice, in my opinion. I could imagine a Morocco version of your recipe, adding some Harissa, soft and sweet onions,…golden raisins why not!
Mint made a nice substitute to the parsley I didn’t have.
Thanks for another great, well explained, tips-loaded recipe, Kate!

This was very yummy!! I don’t know why I have an aversion to parsley.. needless to say I used cilantro instead. Still fantastic!! I also doubled the recipe so I could have plenty of leftovers. This dish is so versatile and would go well with a lot of different things!!

I really loved this recipe! I had previously bought a bag of riced caulilower from Costco but i ended up pulsing it a bit more in the food processor to get the size to mimic couscous and it paid off. I think next time i’ll add lemon zest and double the recipe – really, really good! thank you!

I was skeptical about this recipe because it seems so simple and with cauliflower rice, I always think there should be a lot of seasoning. I was surprised thought that, just as written, it is very tasty and a perfect compliment to our grilled flank steak. I will definitely make this one again!

I have to admit I do not like cauliflower but as my husband is diabetic I have to find low carb recipes. I made this and it was amazing. I paired it with honey garlic chicken and roasted summer squash. I will definitely be making it again. Thank you so much!

We made this with frozen cauliflower rice. It turned out great. It takes a little patience to wait for it to caramelize in the pan, but it did so nicely. We all loved it! Even the 2 year old who kept asking for more “rice”!

I found your recipe while searching for a way to use a 16oz bag of Riced Cauliflower from Trader Joe’s. We loved it! Since it came in a bag I didn’t squeeze out the water. I cooked it in butter (my preferred cooking fat). Even the Picky Hubby liked it a lot. Will definitely save the recipe and make it again. Thank you!

This is my new favourite recipe!! I didn’t even know I liked cauliflower until recently and had never tried cauliflower rice (I grew up on all veg boiled to within an inch of their lives!).
Easy to make (although I made a lot of mess trying to get the moisture from the cauliflower). I forgot to buy almonds, doubled the chilli flakes and added some garlic salt. It was delicious! I can’t wait to make it again!
Thank you for another amazing recipe Kate :)

I made this today and love it. I added roasted multi colored cherry tomatoes which I seasoned with herbs de Provence. Serve slightly warmed with salmon grilled on a cedar plank ans grilled asparagus. Wonderful dinner.

Made this and added lemon zest, roasted cherry tomatoes and shredded kale. I’m thinking next time I’ll throw in some chickpeas to make it an easy lunch! Thanks for everything. I’m always so inspired by your dishes. Love the cookbook!

I made this last night sans almonds and it was such a winner! Eating leftovers now at lunch and thought I would comment. I used dried parsley instead of fresh as it was all I had in the house and it worked like a gem. Will make this again. First time to your site, I’ll be sure to check out some other recipes!

I love how you compare all of the different methods that you used for the cauliflower. I am going to try this with the frozen riced cauliflower (because I already bought some to try). But, it was really good to see what you like and didn’t like about the other methods. I am new to your blog today, but I will be bookmarking it. :) Have a great day! Thanks for sharing!

My husband loves all vegetables – except cauliflower. But I’m trying to eat fewer carbs. So, I tried this last night. He loved it so much that he made sure that I saved the leftovers for his lunch today! Thanks for a great recipe! I didn’t have any lemons, so I used fresh lime juice (nice little tang added), and I wish I had had some fresh parsley, but dried had to do. Next time, I will have fresh!